In this episode, Jeroen Corthout joins to discuss CRM best practices for B2B businesses and what insights you can apply in 2021.

[00:00:35] Introduction: Jeroen Corthout, Co-Founder and CEO of SalesFlare

Jeroen Corthout is the co-founder and CEO at SalesFlare, a CRM for small businesses selling B2B. They help CRM work by automating the data salespeople normally have to input manually and then unlock that data by helping salespeople stay on top of their customers and follow-up at the right times.

[00:01:39] What are typical challenges when implementing CRM systems? How do people overcome them? What are the broad level struggles of CRM implementation?

The main issue is that it's not being used, or it's not being used properly or enough.

One common mistake that companies make is getting the wrong CRM because they haven't thought through what exactly it is they want to achieve. People know they need a CRM, so they just get one. The easiest way to get the right one is first knowing what it will be used for.

Most companies that face challenges with CRM implementations are ones that happen without a lot of thought or are used in an old-fashioned way. As long as you begin by defining your objectives, have an implementation strategy, and a team together a to help make decisions, you will have more success.

[00:11:21] How are B2B companies addressing the low utilization problem? How do you improve that?

B2B businesses have to get away from the bad habits that were created a decade or more ago regarding the traditional ways to use a CRM system. It shouldn't act as big brother to look over people's shoulders and tell people what they should be doing or micro-managing. Rather, use it to embrace the power of technology. You can sync things automatically with inputs so that you're not burdening the sales team.

[00:17:28] From now through the next 5 years, how is CRM going to look different? How are we going to use it different? What should people be considering adopting in their businesses to be ready for that?

Data inputs and connecting systems are two big things. Integrations are certainly part of the future. You have to try to make it as simple as you can.

There is a big difference between simply gaining access to data or being able to report data in your CRM system, versus actually having a system set up where you can interpret that data and turn it into something actionable.

[00:26:24] How do you begin to use CRM to report data back in a way that you can actually begin to take action and do something with it?

Seeing the emails that have been exchanged and the meetings and phone calls that have taken place is interesting, but then it goes beyond that. It's knowing what ...